Famous Entrepreneurs Information

David Koch
Net Worth: $14 billion
Source: Koch Industries/U.S.
Age: 68
Marital Status: Married, three children

• Fortune of one of America's richest men down more than 25% in past six months as fertilizer, oil, chemical markets all collapsed.

• Still, sales at his Koch Industries topped $100 billion in 2008; company now America's second-largest private company.

• Father, Fred C. Koch (died 1967), invented method of turning heavy oil into gasoline. Sons Charles, David, Frederick and William inherited Koch Industries after father's death. Charles and David bought out William and Frederick for $1.1 billion in 1983.

• Today company has stakes in pipelines, refineries, fertilizer, fibers and polymers, forest and consumer products, chemical technology.
• Employs 80,000 workers in 60 countries.

• Purchased Invista, maker of Lycra and Coolmax fabric, in 2004 for $4.2 billion.

• Dropped $21 billion on paper and building-supply vendor Georgia-Pacific the following year. Brothers each own 42%.

• David is executive vice president.

• Holds chemical engineering degrees from MIT; pledged $100 million to alma mater for cancer research last year.

• Pledged another $100 million to New York's Lincoln Center last July.

by Luisa Kroll, Matthew Miller, and Tatiana Serafin

Labels: David Koch, famous entrepreneurs, Koch Industries

Charles Koch
Net Worth: $14 billion
Source: Koch Industries/U.S.
Age: 73
Marital Status: Married, two children

• Fortune of one of America's richest men down more than 25% in past six months as fertilizer, oil, chemical markets all collapsed.

• Still, sales at his Koch Industries topped $100 billion in 2008; company now America's second-largest private company.

• Father, Fred C. Koch (died 1967), invented method of turning heavy oil into gasoline. Sons Charles, David, Frederick and William inherited Koch Industries after father's death. Charles and David bought out William and Frederick for $1.1 billion in 1983.

• Today company has stakes in pipelines, refineries, fertilizer, fibers and polymers, forest and consumer products, chemical technology.

• Employs 80,000 workers in 60 countries.

• Purchased Invista, maker of Lycra and Coolmax fabric, in 2004 for $4.2 billion.

• Dropped $21 billion on paper and building-supply vendor Georgia-Pacific the following year. Brothers each own 42%.

• Charles is chief executive.

• Studied nuclear and chemical engineering at MIT; co-founder of conservative think tank Cato Institute.

by Luisa Kroll, Matthew Miller, and Tatiana Serafin

Labels: Charles Koch, famous entrepreneurs, Koch Industries

Stefan Persson
Net Worth: $14.5 billion
Source: Hennes & Mauritz/Sweden
Age: 61
Marital Status: Married, three children

• Heads cheap-chic fashion retailer Hennes & Mauritz; H&M known for bringing in big names like Madonna, Karl Lagerfeld, Stella McCartney and Kylie Minogue to design affordable collections for its 1,700 stores.

• Opened first store in Japan last fall.

• Business holding up so far amid economic downturn; sales, profits up 13% each in 2008.

• Stock up 3% in past year, but his fortune dragged down by weak euro.
• Plans to create 6,000 new jobs, open 225 stores this year, including first in Beijing.

• Stefan's father Erling founded H&M in 1947; Stefan took over in 1982, gave up chief executive position in 1998 but remains chairman.

• Son Karl-Johan, 34, will become chief this summer.

• Stefan is a founder of the Mentor Foundation, nonprofit that combats substance abuse among youth.

• Enjoys downhill skiing, tennis and golf.

by Luisa Kroll, Matthew Miller, and Tatiana Serafin

Labels: famous entrepreneurs, H and M, Hennes and Mauritz, Mentor Foundation, Stefan Persson